The Office of Advancement Services

The Office of Advancement Services provides comprehensive services of private gift accounting, information services, research, donor relations, and stewardship to support fundraising efforts of the Division of Institutional Advancement. In addition, the department oversees the university's alumni and donor database, with the responsibilities of processing gifts, conducting prospect research regarding potential gift opportunities, and building relationships with our constituents.

Advancement Services includes:

Receiving corporate and individual private gifts in accordance with IRS regulations and CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) standards;

Administering the corporate matching gifts program;

Updating and verifing alumni records;

Managing the donor prospect tracking system;

Planning and managing stewardship initiatives;

Conducting donor research

Gift Management Fee

Effective August 1, 2017, Fayetteville State University and the Fayetteville State University Foundation will impose a minimal fee on certain kinds of gifts made to these entities. The assessment of such a fee is a customary practice for universities in the State of North Carolina and nationwide because it provides essential support to a university's overall development activities.

The gift management fee assessed by Fayetteville State University and the Fayetteville State University Foundation will be used to assist in generating the funds needed to meet the increasing demands for private support to the University and the Foundation, and to support the rising costs related to private fund-raising activities. The fee will allow both entities the opportunity to expand needed fundraising initiatives and development efforts. The following guidelines serve to ensure that funds are used specifically to support University and Foundation fundraising initiatives and activities:

All private cash gifts received by either Fayetteville State University or the Fayetteville State University Foundation will be subject to a five percent (5%) gift management fee.

For non-cash gifts (pledges, securities, property, etc.), the 5% gift management fee will be applied after the pledge is received and the gift is converted to cash. In addition, the direct costs involved for asset disposal (including appraisal fees, surveys, attorney's fees, etc.) will be charged against the proceeds for all real property transactions.

Each gift receipt generated will have the following disclosure statement: "Fayetteville State University [or the Fayetteville State University Foundation] assesses a 5% fee on certain gifts that is used to defray the costs of raising and administering funds."

Information on fees will be available and accessible in multiple locations - in proposals, fund agreements, in our annual report, and on our website.

Donors will receive credit for the full amount of their gifts, including that portion deducted for the gift management fee.

The gift management fee will not be assessed on the following:

University or Foundation sponsored program grants that are administered under the postaward grant overhead receipts administrative standards.

Pledges or funds received prior to August 1, 2017. Such will be grandfathered in at no expense.

Payments for outstanding pledges received prior to August 1, 2017 will operate under the conditions specified by a signed gift agreement with the university.Existing pledges without a gift agreement Existing multi-year pledges to non-endowed funds that do not have an existing gift agreement or memorandum of understanding will be assessed the fee described in the Fee Usage section of this Policy.

Prospect Management uses a systematic process to help determine who should ask which donors, for what gift, at what time, to what program. At FSU, the staff in the Office of Advancement Services works closely with development officers and administrators to strategically use information to make the university's advancement efforts more efficient and effective. The information collected by Prospect Research is used in conjunction with information gathered by development personnel to help create a sophisticated approach to fundraising that is well conceived, sensitive, and effective. Our Prospect researcher conducts research on people, companies and foundations. We collect, evaluate, analyze, organize and disseminate publicly available information in a way that maximizes its usefulness in making decisions for development operations. In large part, prospect research seeks to identify new potential donors, find indicators of prospects' interests, willingness and capacity to give, and provide information to development personnel that can be strategically applied throughout the development cycle.

Gifts Processing receives private donations to the university. Our team is responsible for recording and maintaining alumni and donor information, providing biographical and gift processing, and ensuring that all contributions are receipted in a timely manner. Processing and acknowledgement of private gifts to the university include gifts of cash, credit card, stock and gifts-in-kind. Biographical updates processed in the university's alumni and donor database include notification of name changes, change-of-address, employment information, job promotions, marriages, births, deaths and research of lost alumni.